GOT WISDOM?

What is wisdom?  The Cambridge Dictionary defines wisdom as "the ability to use your knowledge and experience to make good decisions and judgments." In other words, wisdom is the practical application of knowledge. But what is true wisdom?  That is an age-old question the natural man does not know how to answer. Sure, the unregenerate man thinks he is wise, and to some degree, he is. However, humanity can only replicate what the Creator has given him the tools to make. Therefore, we must understand a couple of essential facts relating to wisdom:

First, man has the wisdom and knowledge to make the world more functional. With God-given technologies and ingenuity, man has, in many cases, made the world better. The problem with man’s wisdom is that it is temporal (temporary) and fades away. The things invented today will be replaced tomorrow with better things that are more functional and do tasks quicker.

Secondly, the converse is also true. Man has made and done many things that are detrimental to this world. I think of those technologies, philosophies, acts, and procedures that oppose what our Creator intended for humanity in this world, such as abortion, homosexuality, murder, and adultery, which His law expressly prohibits. These things were prohibited long before the Ten Commandments were given, reaffirmed with the Ten Commandments, and reaffirmed again in the church age with God's written revelation, the Bible. Time and time, God has repeatedly reaffirmed His commands toward man, and man has often gone against those commands. Man goes against God’s commands simply because even though he is born again, he struggles with the flesh.

For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. Romans 7:18

For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. Galatians 5:17

What is true wisdom? It is wisdom that comes from God alone.

When we explore wisdom, there are some basic presuppositions that we need to understand:

1.    The sanctifying work of the indwelling Holy Spirit must be at work in our lives if we seek true wisdom and receive it. for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. Philippians 2:13 

2.    God has chosen His Word as the tool to reveal His truth and principles for life to believers in this age. God’s Word is sufficient and authoritative for believers in every discipline and stage in life. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 

3.   It is up to us to use God’s wisdom. Solomon, the wisest man in the world, asked for wisdom, and the Lord bestowed it on him. He wrote Proverbs, most likely, when he was younger. However, Solomon did not always use that wisdom. As he got older, he made improper alliances with nations, had more than one wife (which is not how God intended it to be), and did things detrimental to the kingdom he ruled. Remember, God gave Solomon wisdom (not just “smarts”). He squandered a lot of that wisdom throughout his life. Ecclesiastes gives (from an older Solomon's viewpoint) a sobering reminder of what happens when we don’t use the wisdom of God throughout our lives and resort to the wisdom of this world. "Vanity of vanities," says the Preacher, "Vanity of vanities! All is vanity." What advantage does man have in all his work Which he does under the sun? Ecclesiastes 1:2-3

In studying Solomon and his writings, it is evident that he had the same problems most committed believers do today: obeying the simple commands of God, such as the words of James 1:22: But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.

Tim Bergen